Charlie Kirk's parents and widow Erika to confront assassination suspect Tyler Robinson next week as they attend key murder trial hearing

By RACHEL BOWMAN, US SENIOR NEWS REPORTER Published: 22:20, 30 June 2026 | Updated: 22:21, 30 June 2026 Charlie Kirk's rarely-seen parents and widow, Erika Kirk, will come face to face with his alleged assassin next week at a hearing ahead of his bombshell murder trial. The family is expected to make a rare appearance at the key hearing for Tyler Robinson, the 23-year-old man accused of shooting Kirk on September 10, 2025. Kirk's sudden and traumatic death, in front of thousands of students at Utah Valley University, stunned the nation - and catalyzed a cultural movement just two months before Americans voted to re-elect conservative Donald Trump for his second term.  All eyes will be on Robinson as he stands accused of assassinating the dad-of-two.  While Erika has stepped into the spotlight in the wake of her husband's death, Kirk's moderate, Illinois-based parents have mostly kept to themselves. However, they will step out of the shadows to stare down Robinson at the weeklong pretrial hearing in Utah on Monday.  During the hearing, prosecutors will aim to show they have sufficient evidence to proceed to trial. Erika, who took the helm of Turning Point USA after her husband's death, and her in-laws, Robert and Kathryn Kirk, are planning to attend, a person familiar with the matter told the Associated Press. Charlie Kirk's parents, Robert and Kathryn Kirk, are expected to attend a weeklong pretrial hearing for their son's accused killer Erika Kirk, who took the helm of Turning Point USA after her husband's death, will also come face to face with his accused killer It will be the first time that Kirk's family will be in the courtroom with the man accused of killing him. Before Kirk became one of the best-known conservatives in America and a key ally to Donald Trump, he was raised by his moderate parents in Illinois.  Kirk's mother, Kathryn, was reportedly a mental health counselor, and his father, Robert, worked in the construction business and owned his own architecture firm. His resume included work as a project architect manager on Trump Tower in Manhattan, reports PrimeTimer.  It is not known whether the elder Kirk ever personally met with Trump during the president's real estate days, which were decades before his son became one of his closest allies. In a 2018 profile of Kirk in the Chicago Tribune, it was said that Kirk had once described his parents as Republicans, 'but not particularly ardent ones.'  After his death, Senator Marsha Blackburn posted a photo with Kirk's parents when Trump honored Charlie with a posthumous Presidential Medal of Freedom in October.  Although Kirk never shared images of his parents, he did post a photo of himself with his younger sister, Mary, at her high school graduation in 2014, before she became an art curator in Illinois. It is unclear if she will be attending the court hearing with the family. Prosecutors have said that during the hearing they plan to introduce forensic analyses, surveillance video, recordings of witness statements, autopsy findings and alleged messages from Robinson admitting to the crime. While Kirk's parents have largely stayed out of the spotlight, Senator Marsha Blackburn posted a photo with when Trump honored Charlie with a posthumous Presidential Medal of Freedom  Tyler Robinson has been charged with aggravated murder for the September 10 killing of Kirk If convicted, prosecutors have said they plan to seek the death penalty for Robinson after a judge denied the defense's request to take it off the table on June 26. He has not yet entered a plea.  The judge has also ruled that Robinson's transgender lover, Lance Twiggs, 22, does not have to testify in person at the hearing. Twiggs, who is transgender and goes by the name 'Luna,' was living with Robinson during the time of the alleged murder. After Robinson turned himself in to authorities, federal investigators learned that he sent Twiggs a flurry of text messages during his 33 hours on the run, disclosing his alleged involvement in the shooting and his efforts to evade capture. Twiggs has never been charged or implicated in the shooting, and has instead cooperated with authorities. The Daily Mail contacted Turing Point USA for comment.  No comments have so far been submitted. Why not be the first to send us your thoughts, or debate this issue live on our message boards. By posting your comment you agree to our house rules. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual We will automatically post your comment and a link to the news story to your Facebook timeline at the same time it is posted on MailOnline. To do this we will link your MailOnline account with your Facebook account. We’ll ask you to confirm this for your first post to Facebook. You can choose on each post whether you would like it to be posted to Facebook. 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